Spriha Srivastava
India’s finance ministry has decided to issue tax-free infrastructure bonds through infrastructure financing and insurance companies with a minimum tenure of ten years. But a limit has been placed on the number of these bonds that a company can issue during 2010-11.
Kallista Energy, the French wind farm operator that is 100 percent-owned by AXA Private Equity, has acquired the Brittany wind farm assets of Neoelectra Group, a Paris-based private energy producer. The project has attracted finance from OSEO and Societe Generale.
HOCHTIEF, the German infrastructure group, has secured a contract worth €89.2m to build and operate two schools in the city of Offenbach, in west-central Germany. The concession period for the project is 22 years including the construction phase, expected to complete in 38 months.
The Indian infrastructure investor has increased its target for an India-focused infrastructure fund from $500m to $1bn. The fund will focus on both rural and urban infrastructure in India.
Serco has been awarded a £415m contract by the Ministry of Justice to build and operate a new prison at Belmarsh West in London. While debt financing for the project will be provided by a club of four banks, the equity finance will be solely provided by Barclays Infrastructure Funds.
Palisade Investment Partners, an Australian manager of unlisted infrastructure, has appointed two more investment managers to its team, taking the total number to seven. The appointment coincides with Palisade’s recent success in raising capital from institutional investors.
The Scandinavian country’s first ever health care project to be built using the public-private partnership model has reached financial close. The contract will be financed with a debt package of close to €1bn provided by 12 banks, including the European Investment Bank and the Nordic Investment Bank.
An ambitious investment of $2.5trn by 2020 will be made across 19 infrastructure sectors in the state of Gujarat, located in the western part of India. The state government is also considering setting up an equity fund of over $1bn in order to fund infrastructure projects at initial stages.
UK investment firm Eredene Capital is part of a winning bid to build and operate the container terminal at Ennore Port in southern India. The bid is estimated at a total cost of £207m and the construction phase is scheduled to be completed in 33 months.
GCP Infrastructure Investments, a new £50m debt vehicle set up by Gravis Capital Partners, will list on the London Stock Exchange on July 22. The fund aims to provide subordinated debt to UK project finance initiative projects.